SEATTLE — The Washington Huskies men's basketball team had its most impressive win of the season against the Southern Utah Thunderbirds on Dec. 13 at Alaska Airlines Arena in Seattle.

The Huskies beat the Thunderbirds 105-69. Six Washington players reached double-digit points and of the 13 players that registered playing time for the Dawgs, 12 scored at least a point.

One of the players that scored was freshman forward Nikola Dzepina, who made his collegiate debut Saturday.

The 6-foot-10 Serbian forward arrived in the Pacific Northwest earlier this week and wasn't cleared for official team activities until the day of the game.

Despite his limited experience around his new teammates, Dzepina still found a way to contribute. He scored five points on 2-for-3 shooting (1-for-2 from 3-point range). His miss from beyond the arc was an attempt that came within Dzepina's first 10 seconds on the court.

Another player that saw action for Washington was sophomore forward Bryson Tucker, who made his return after a six-game absence with an ankle sprain.

With Tucker back in the forward and Dzepina's scant experience with the roster, there's a question how much of a contributor the latter can be on the team going forward. The Huskies have just three games left until they go full-tilt in Big Ten action.

"(Saturday's) the first day he could practice," head coach Danny Sprinkle said after the game. "He couldn't practice all week. Today was the first official day he some walkthrough, some shoot-around and showed up to the game. And if it was a close game, he never would have played. He doesn't know any of our plays yet, things like that. Getting him comfortable — you could see how well he shoots the basketball. Offensively he's really, really talented. And when you have a big that could stretch the floor like that, it opens up driving lanes for (Zoom Diallo), driving lanes for (Desmond Claude), for (JJ Mandaquit), for (Hannes Steinbach) to work down low. They can't double him as easy because now you have another threat from (3-point range) out there. A big guy that can shoot it like him, it's a huge weapon."

As mentioned by Sprinkle, Dzepina's unique combination of size and range can open up another level to the offense Washington hasn't reached this season.

If Dzepina can learn and catch up to the offense by the time the Huskies get into Big Ten play, they could be one of the most dangerous offenses in the conference.

Washington will next be in action against Southern University at 8:30 p.m. PT on Dec. 19 at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle.

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